Gold-separator.



N0. 659',|48. Patented Oct. 2, I900. F. P. HOPKINS &. L. MANZKE.

GOLD SEPARATOR.

' rApplication filed Feb. 17, 1900. (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shae W/TNESSEStwig/95 Patented Oct. 2, I900.

No. ss9,|4a.

F. P. HOPKINS &. L. MANZKE.

GOLD SEPABA'TOR.

[Application filed Feb. 17, 1800.)

2 Shoots-Sheet 2- (No Model.)

WITNESSES UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK PAYONETTE HOPKINS AND LOUIS MANZKE, OF SPIRIT LAKE, IOWA.

. GOLD-SEPARATOR.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent N 0. 659,148, dated Qctober2, 1900. Application filed February 17, 1960. serial No- 6,581. (Nomodel.)

To all whont it may concern:

Be it known that We,'FRANK PAYONETTE HOPKINS and LOUIS MANZKE, citizensof the United States, and residents of Spirit Lake, in the county ofDickinson and State of Iowa, have invented a new and ImprovedGold-Separator, of which the followingis afull, clear, and exactdescription.

This invention relates to improvements in machines for separating goldor other precious metals from sand or gravel in a dry state; and theobject is to provide a simple machine by means of which the values maybe quickly separated from sand or gravel.

We will describe a gold-separator embodying ourinvention and then pointout the novel features in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification,-

in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts inall the figures.

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of a separator embodying ourinvention. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is asection on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4shows a portion of areceiving-drawer of modified form. Fig. 5 represents a form of screenemployed, and Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6 6 of Fig. at.

The machine comprises two cylinders 1 2, open at each end and bothinclined in opposite directions, the discharge end of the upper cylinderbeing arranged to discharge material into the lower cylinder. Attheupper end of the cylinder 1 is a feed-hopper 3, and this upper cylinderis mounted on a shaft 4, having bearings in frame uprights 5 6. Thecylinder is connected to the shaft 4 by means of spiders 7 8, near theends of the cylinder, and arranged within this cylinder are cylindricalscreens 9 and 9 and within the screen 9 is a gravel screen or sieveconsisting of longitudinally-extended bars 10, supported by the spiders7 and 8.

The lower cylinder 2 is provided with annular corrugations,which providepockets for receiving quicksilver 11. This cylinder 2 is mounted on ashaft 12 by means of spiders 13 1 1, and arranged within the cylinderare two screens 15 16, of cylindrical form. It may be here stated thatthe several screens are of difierent-si'zed mesh-that is, the screen 16is of finer mesh than the screen 9, the screen 15 is of finer mesh thanthe-screen 16, and the screen 9 has the coarsest mesh of all.Preferablythe openings will be oblong, as indicated at 17 in Fig. 5. Bythis construction of screen thin pieces of gold will be permitted topass through, which would not be possible with screens having a smallsquare mesh. The material from the upper cylinder 1, or rather the bodyportion thereof, is designed to pass through a chute 18 into the innerscreen 16 of the lower cylinder, and heavy particles, such as gravel,that cannot passthrough thescreen or sieve 16 or through the screen 9are discharged through a chute 19 into a pipe 20, mounted to rotate atthe side of the cylinder 2. The object in rotating the pipe 20 is tocause the gravel to move freely.

The cylinders 1 and 2 and the gravel-pipe 20 are rotated by means of aband 21, driven by anysuitable motor and. extended around pulleys 22 and23 on the respective shafts 4 and 12 and also around a pulley 24 on theshaft supporting the pipe 20.

Arranged below the outlet end of the cylinder 2 is a casing 25, in whicha number of receiving-drawers 26 are removably placed. Eachreceiving-drawer at its inner end has a partition 27 extended abouthalf-way up the height of the drawer and inclined forward, and forwardof this partition. 27 is a partition 28, that is also inclined orparallel with the partition 27; but these partitions 28 extend to thefull height of the drawer, as plainly in dicated in Fig. 1. Thepartitions 28 may be made adjustable as to their degree of inclinationor as to their extension above the top of the drawer. In Figs. 4and 6 wehave shown the partitions 28 as provided with bolts 29, passed throughvertical slots in the sides of the drawers, and on the outer ends ofthese bolts are set-nuts 30.

Rearward of the series of drawers 26 is a fan-casing 31, in which twofans 32 33 are arranged, the wall of the casing 31 rearward of the fansbeing provided with openings through which air may be drawn. Pulleys 34,35, and 38 on the shafts of the fans 32 and 33 are connected by anendless band 36, operated by a suitable motor.

In operation the pay-dirt is put into the hopper 3 by any suitablemeans. From this hopper the material passes to the gravelscreen 10. Theparts not capable of passing through said screen will run out at thebat-k end from a platform 10 to a dump or other suitable receptacle. Theparts orsizes of material that pass through the meshes of the screen 10are caught by the screen 9, and the material that will not pass throughthe mesh of this screen is discharged over a chute 10 to the dump. Thematerial that passes through the screen 9 is caught by the screen 9, andthe sizes that will not pass through the mesh of this screen 9 willdischarge into the chute 19, which delivers the same into the rotatingpipe 20, and thence onto one of the partitions 2*, where the gold isseparated from the gravel. The material that passes through the screen 9is caught by the cylinder 1 and led by the ch ute 18 into the screen 16of the lower cylinder. lhe material passing through the screen 16 willbe caught by the screen 15 and will run out at the lower end onto one ofthe partitions 28. The sizes of sand or gravel that pass through thescreen 15 are caught by the corrugated cylinder, and a portion of thismaterial will be discharged onto a partition 28, where the gold notcaught by the quicksilver in the corrugations is separated from the sandor gravel by the air blast.

\Ve have used the expression discharging on the partitions 28; but therewill be very little sand or gravel actually touching the partitions, thereal separating at the lower end being done by the air-blast while thematerial is passing from a chute +10 to an inclined plate 41 and thenceto a partition 28.

Having now described our invention, we claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent 1. A gold-separator, comprising two rotary cylindersinclined in opposite directions and one arranged above the other, theupper cylinder having two cylindrical screens spaced apart and ofdifferent mesh and also having a gravel-screen consisting oflongitudinallyplaced bars, the bars being spaced apart, two cylindricalscreens in the lower cylinder spaced apart and of different mesh, achute for feeding material from the upper cylinder to the interiorscreen of the lower cylinder, a rotary pipe arranged at one side of thelower cylinder, a chute for discharging material from a screen of theupper cylinder into the said pipe, a series of receptacles for receivingmaterial discharged from the lower cylinder and from said pipe,deflecting-plates arranged. in said receptacles, and means for causingan air-blast to separate fine sand or the like from the values passinginto the receptacles, substantially specified.

2. A gold separator, comprising tworotary cylinders inclined in oppositedirections and one arranged above the other, the upper cylinder havingtwo cylindrical screens spaced apart and of different mesh and alsohaving a gravel-screen consisting of longitudinallyplaced bars, twocylindrical screens in the lower cylinder spaced apart and of differentmesh, a chute for feeding material from the upper cylinder to theinterior screen of the lower cylinder, a rotary pipe arranged at oneside of the lower cylinder, a chute for discharging material from ascreen in the upper cylinder into said pipe, a receptacle for receivingmaterial discharged from the lower cylinder and from said pipe, and anair-blast device for operating upon material passing into thereceptacle, substantially as specified.

In witness whereof we have signed our names to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

FRANK PAIONE'ITE HOPKINS. LOUIS MANZKE.

\Vitnesses to the signature of Frank P. Hopkins:

J. W. BRANDON, WM. HAYWARD. Witnesses to the signature of Louis Manzke:

W. C. DON CARLOS, F. H. FERGUSON.

